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One kinky wood carver. One younger chef looking to try new things. A series of lessons that bring both men more than they bargained for…

Curtis Hunt has made a name for himself as a chainsaw wood carver, winning national competitions and operating a small business in Rainbow Cove, Oregon. As winter whittles away his tourist traffic, his goal is just to survive the season and try to not get lost in grief for his dead lover. It’s been two years, but he’s sure he’ll never be over the love of a lifetime. However, his body has a certain restlessness that he doesn’t quite know how to calm.

Logan Rosner knows a thing or two about restlessness. It’s what drove him to Rainbow Cove to be a chef at a bar and grill run by his friends. And it’s what drives him to a single sizzling encounter with the local legendary lumberjack. Both men get far more than they expected and learn that first impressions aren’t always accurate…

But when Logan proposes a series of sexy lessons, Curtis must decide how much he’s willing to risk. He knows he can’t afford to get attached to Logan’s good cooking, his easy smiles, or his caretaking, but he keeps going back for more, even as deeper emotions become involved. Soon, Curtis must decide whether to risk his heart again or risk losing Logan for good.

Tender with a Twist is a 79,000 word stand-alone gay romance with a May/December theme, featuring a second chance at love, opposites attract, loads of sexy times with mild BDSM elements, and one emotionally-charged, guaranteed happy ending with no cliffhangers.

Greetings! Thank you so much for having me today! I’m celebrating the release of my latest book, TENDER WITH A TWIST, which features a kinky wood carver and a much younger chef. This is probably my sexiest book to date, and I just loved the journey of these two. And I’ve brought an excerpt today from one of my favorite scenes in the book when they first decide to hook up. This is in Curtis’s POV (the carver):

***

I had better come-on lines in my arsenal, but that one just slipped out. And judging by Logan’s slack jack and wide eyes, he was just as shocked as me. Hell, I didn’t even know exactly why I was still there, why I’d waited around to talk to him. Up until he’d flattened Leroy, I hadn’t particularly liked the kid, but something about the way he’d handled the situation had earned my respect—and my dick’s notice. I’d liked his commanding tone, his hard stares and regal posture, all things that really did it for me.

“Just wanted to talk a second,” I clarified when he still didn’t speak. “First off, wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m fine.” He continued to look at me critically, like I was some new species of bug, one that was annoying his ankles. And damn, but I hadn’t known he was capable of that stare, and part of me liked it. A lot. “I already told Mason I wouldn’t fight again. Sorry if he was a friend of yours—”

“Leroy? Hell, no. We go way back, but I wouldn’t call that piece of shit a friend. You did what you needed to do, handling yourself. Damn impressive.”

That was the truth. I’d been bored silly all night, drinking a tad more than I should have and waiting it out so I could drive back. Then the kid chef had made old Leroy squeal in pain and my dick had woken the fuck up. But it was also what I’d seen in his eyes. Hardness. Anger. Pride. Enjoyment.

“Thanks.” A muscle worked in his jaw.

“You liked it, didn’t you?” I pitched my voice low, seductive.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” A flush crept up his neck.

“It’s okay. I’m not gonna tell a soul. But you liked putting a hurt on him.”

He nodded sharply. “Not in that way—”

I laughed. “In exactly that way. You like handing out pain? You serious about what you told Leroy? That you’re a Dom?”

“I am. And if you’re here to give me shit—”

“Me? Aw, hell, nah. I’m here to see if you’ve got more in you.”

“More?” Damn it. He really was going to make me spell this out.

“You wanna put a hurt on someone? Still got a head of steam built up? Well, I’m here for that.”

The critical look was back, but it was more thoughtful now. “You want pain?”

“And lots of it.” I nodded. Now we were getting somewhere. It was what I’d been jonesing for hard for two weeks now, what I hadn’t really expected to find tonight. I was damn picky, and I didn’t much feel like playing with someone who’d known Troy and me after the whole Bill thing. Too much baggage. But strangers were dicey business, as I knew all too well. So I’d figured on getting my dick sucked and leaning heavy on my fantasies to get off, but then little dog here had gone all alpha on Leroy, and my senses had perked up. He might do nice. Green and malleable enough that I could keep control of any scene, not be taking any crazy risks, but pumped full of enough adrenaline to dish out what I wanted.

“But you’re…” His eyes narrowed, zeroing in on my arms. Ah. He spoke code enough to notice the placement of my gauntlets. “You’re a sub?”

“I switch. But I’m a pain slut. You can get any master/slave fantasies right out of your brain, because I’m not into that. But pain? Control? Bondage? Bring it on.”

“Now?” Oh, his face was so damn expressive. I loved that about him. I’d be able to tell what he was thinking, which was good. And right then it was like I’d proposed Christmas in July, complete with all the trimmings.

“Well, I’d prefer not in the parking lot.” I laughed, trying to turn on my little-used charm, show him I meant the offer. “Your place?”

He was quiet, but his eyes kept moving, like I could see the wheels turning. Finally, he said, “Thirty minutes? I need to ride home and shower off the stink of the kitchen. I smell like fryer grease. But we can talk more there about what exactly you want.”

I wasn’t too awfully picky about smells myself nor did I fancy much conversation, but I nodded. Best to let him get comfortable with the idea. “You want a ride? We can toss your bike in the back of the truck.”

“No thanks.” His eyes went back to wary, like he didn’t quite trust my offer, like I might be about to pull a big joke on him. And I hated that wariness, wanted to stomp on whatever had put it there.

I held up my hands. “I’m serious about this. I wanna play tonight. One-time thing.” That needed saying, so I put some firmness behind the words. “But I want what you can dish out.”

“Thirty minutes. Be ready.” He skewered me with another of those hard stares before unlocking his bike.

“Will do.” I watched him take off and took my time getting to the truck. He lived on the same sleepy street as Nash and Mason, and, on further consideration, I really didn’t want either of them knowing my business. I’d lost my damn head, and I sure didn’t need Nash’s opinion on that. So I parked behind a vacant house two blocks away and slowly walked over, trying to give him his time without second-guessing myself and calling off the whole deal.

But then I remembered the look he’d leveled on Leroy. Yeah, I wanted me some of that.

***

Want to know what happens at Logan’s place? Find out in TENDER WITH A TWIST! Thanks so much for having me today!

Fun fact: if there is a book by an author I love I tend not to read the blurb. Why? Because I know I am going to read it anyway, so I like to go in clean. So I was very pleasantly surprised to see the BDSM elements in the book. Surprise to me!

Tender with a Twist is book 2 in the Rainbow Cove series. This series started with 3 friends who moved to Rainbow Cove to open a restaurant together. This installment is about the head chef, Logan (the seemingly quiet one of the three) and Curtis, the loner, widowed, chainsaw wood carving, resident grouch. Curtis is still mourning his husband, but he has…..needs.

I absolutely LOVED that quiet Logan is a Dom. Or more like a Dom wanna be. He wants to be a Dom, has studied how to be a Dom, he just hasn’t had the opportunity. Until Curtis. The big, bad chainsaw wielding carver. Flipping the stereotype is one of my favorites.

Curtis was willing to try with Logan. He needed to submit, he needed pain. He did not need a relationship or love.

Logan needed to dominate, needed to inflict pain. But he also didn’t need a relationship or love.

So of course I loved watching them discover something together. Something that was more than BDSM scenes. And man, was it hot. And sweet. And romantic. *swoons*

The 180 degree difference from Curtis calling Logan “kid” all of the time to falling to his knees when in a scene was…phew. Ya. That is make you shiver goose bump worthy. And yet, outside of the bedroom (or living room), they begin to act as a couple. Doing things together, getting meals. Even going on a weekend trip. Logan never has the arrogance that so many doms seem to have outside of a scene. He leaves it all in the bedroom.

It’s no secret that I adore Miss Albert’s books.I really think this might be my favorite.

4.5 pieces of eye candy

Annabeth Albert grew up sneaking romance novels under the bed covers. Now, she devours all subgenres of romance out in the open—no flashlights required! When she’s not adding to her keeper shelf, she’s a multi-published Pacific Northwest romance writer.

Emotionally complex, sexy, and funny stories are her favorites both to read and to write. Annabeth loves finding happy endings for a variety of pairings and is a passionate gay rights supporter. In between searching out dark heroes to redeem, she works a rewarding day job and wrangles two children.